Finally, the holidays were upon her and Jennifer felt compelled to go see her mother for Christmas. She had opted out of Thanksgiving and Darla had actually seemed uncharacteristically upset. She had called her the next morning and made Jennifer feel bad, so she had promised to go home for a couple days during the next holiday.
She dreaded the trip for many reasons though. One of the big ones was the reminder of the imminent loss of her childhood home and all those memories of her father that she was afraid would go with it. There was also her mother’s unwillingness to talk about it. On top of that she would have to deal with her new rich stepfather that she couldn’t stand to be around. And of course, the main reason to stay away would have been to avoid seeing the stepbrother she had sucked face with and whom she had allowed to feel her up. That was kind of a big one. It would have been a lot for anyone and Jennifer just felt so overwhelmed. She wished that she could find a good enough excuse to just skip the whole thing. But she was out of excuses.
The day that she was packing up for what would probably be her last ride “home”, she received a large envelope folded over in her mail box. It was a crisp textured eight and one half by eleven inch white envelope with no return address. Opening it curiously, she found a small collection of papers inside. There was a note that was on the top of the stack of legal papers that at first just confused her. Then it made tears well up in her eyes, blurring her vision. She could hardly believe it and had to read it through three times before it would begin to sink in.
“Jennifer, Samuel overheard the conversation with your mother about your childhood home. We hope this is not unwelcomed or too ostentatious of a gift, but we decided to buy it for you and would like to give it to you as an early Christmas present, if you will accept. Of course we will have to deal with some tax implications, etc. but we have attorneys for that sort of thing. Along with the house will also be a fund to be used for upkeep and repairs for the foreseeable future, so that this does not become a burden to you financially. You probably are wondering where this is coming from. We know what it is like to lose a parent and to want to hold on to their memory. We lost our mother. It is our sincerest wish that you accept this small gift on our behalf. You would be giving us great pleasure in receiving it. I hope to see you soon. Charles”
After she picked her jaw up off the floor and stopped crying tears of both joy and relief, she looked at the pages once more to be sure she wasn’t imagining it. The letter trembled in her hands as she read the important parts several times over. Then she looked at the new deed with her name on it. There it was in black and white, but she still couldn’t believe it. People don’t just give other people a house. Did they? Well, apparently. These guys did. It seemed like they had done that very thing. Jennifer was speechless as she made her final preparations for the trip home. She realized she was driving towards her home for real now. I was hers, unless this was some kind of trick. It was still hard to believe it in her mind. If it was true, she did not know how she could repay them for their kindness.
***
“Hey baby, are you leaving soon? I’m all ready.”
“Yeah Steve. I’m leaving now.”
“Ok babe. I’ll see you when you get here.”
Jennifer hung up and grimaced, she hated being called babe. Baby wasn’t so bad, but babe just grated on her nerves for some reason. She had mentioned it to Steve, but he did not seem to care too much and continued punctuating his sentences liberally with the nickname.
She had decided to take Steve with her for purely selfish reasons. The visit was already going to be more than she wanted to face and she planned to use her boyfriend as a buffer. This approach wasn’t going to win her any girlfriend of the year awards, but sometimes you just had to do what you had to do. The dinner was supposed to be at Ryan’s mansion and her stepbrothers were going to be there, as well as the rest of Ryan’s family. She had not met them, but Jennifer already imagined that she knew how it would go. She knew they were just people like her, but sometimes the money thing could be a lot to take. Of course those stepbrothers had just bought her a house, so maybe it was time to see them in a new light.
So she figured Steve could do the small talk thing with the rich folk, since he came from a pretty well-off family. She also figured that Steve would keep her mind and her lips away from the forbidden ones that she still felt attracted to. The knowledge of her new familial connection with Charles had not dampened the memory of the heat she had felt between them. Jennifer could still feel Charles’ body against hers. That feeling and the memory of that encounter had kept her up late at night on several occasions in the intervening months since she had seen him. She imagined that a man like that would always have a girlfriend but despite the obvious problems it would present, she couldn’t help but wish that he was available.
Jennifer picked up Steve and was glad to see that he had dressed up a bit with a button down and some slacks. He looked nice. Now if he could just leave out all the “babe” comments.
Since Jennifer supposedly had her own home now, she figured she had somewhere to escape to if things got to be too much on the trip. That helped her relax a bit. She assumed that her new benefactors had left the house as it was. She had actually lost track of what had happened with the house when she retreated into her bubble over the summer and fall. Anyhow, even though the family situation would be marginally more manageable now, she also realized that in coping with it she had potentially created another problem. By inviting him to meet the family it was very possible that he would assume that she was stepping up the relationship. That, of course, would mean sex for Steve. That would be a pretty reasonable conclusion actually. The problem was that Jennifer still wasn’t sure if she wanted to have sex with him, even though it had been several months since they had started dating. She had given him a few blow jobs to satiate his needs a bit and to let off some of the pressure he was no doubt feeling inside. She had certainly relieved that pressure admirably, but it clearly wasn’t enough. He wanted it all and she knew that that weekend, he would try to get it.
He kissed her as they were about to drive away from in front of his dorm but Jennifer was the one who pulled back when his mouth became more insistent. She pretended she had to focus on the drive ahead of them. From the look in his eyes, she imagined he was pretty sure they would be sleeping together any day now. At times like this, he seemed to look at her almost as a possession, Jennifer thought. She wasn’t sure if she liked it or not. Almost against her will, her body responded to his soft lips and probing tongue, and she momentarily contemplated ending her self-imposed dry spell. She really did need to have sex and so it was starting to look like Steve just might be in luck after all. The way she kept vacillating around this issue, she could understand how crazy men thought woman were. She felt a little crazy herself, she laughed inside.
5
“So I thought we were going to your mom’s?”
“We are. I just wanted to put our things here. I haven’t seen the house since I was here for the wedding. And I haven’t seen it since it became mine. It feels pretty good. I thought we could tidy up a few things while we are here.”
She had not given him all the details of what had transpired with the house. She just said that her mother had told her to treat it like her own house. She further implied that her mother was the one who would sign it over to her. She stopped just short of lying. No need to complicate an already complicated situation by telling Steve about the gift. Steve’s face screwed up at the mention of tidying up though. He did not like the sound of doing any kind of work apparently and Jennifer doubted that she would get any help from him. She just hoped that the rest of house was not a complete mess. Her mother, Darla had a tendency to leave work for everyone else to do, so there really was no telling what the state of the basement and main rooms would be. At least it was hers though, she thought. She assumed her mom wouldn’t care about the furnishings, but who could tell.
The house was surprisingly
well kept, and just as she had last seen it. The customary hidden key outside had been replaced with a shiny new one that opened the front door. On the kitchen table she discovered the rest of a new set of keys resting on top of a note from Charles welcoming her home. Apparently they had changed all the locks, giving her even more of a feeling that it was really hers. So it was really true. Her heart skipped a beat as she looked at the familiar handwriting. Jennifer folded the note and stuck it in her pocket before Steve came in with the bags. She saw his nose crinkle at her new home, his upper class breeding coming in again. To see it from his eyes, she was sure that it was a let-down.
“Wow, this place is tiny.”
“It’s a three bedroom, two-story house, Steve, and it is just for me. So I think it is plenty big enough”, she said, trying not to feel, or sound, too annoyed. Then again, what he said was objectively annoying she thought.
That was the difference between them in a nutshell. Nothing was ever good enough for a guy like Steve, who was promised the best of everything from the time he came out of his mother’s womb. He just always got whatever he wanted. He expected to get his degree and work at one of the prominent law offices in the city where he grew up. His family had connections and it was practically a done deal already. His career path was chosen purely on a monetary basis, while Jennifer wanted to get into law to help people. Her school had kids representing both sides of that fence. While some just wanted to make a difference in the world, others were just getting a license to swindle money from everyone they came in contact with. Maybe that was a bit of an extreme way to see it, but that was her view.
“I guess. I don’t know if I would want something this small though. I need room to move.”
She wondered if Steve realized that with every word out of his mouth, his chances of getting in her pants were dropping exponentially. Putting that thought aside, Jennifer looked around at her house proudly. It was perfect for her.
“Well, we can’t always agree on everything,” she finally said.
As Steve walked over to use the bathroom, Jennifer sighed to herself. She didn’t know what she was doing with him and she was just now realizing that she had not really thought through the ramifications of bringing him home with her. It would definitely signify that they were becoming more serious. He was already expecting more than she really wanted to give him, and now she was only encouraging it. He might even try to get some right then and there. The fact was, she was not even sure if she really liked him at all when he made ignorant comments like that. He didn’t seem to have a filter or monitor inside of his brain that told him that he was being an insensitive jerk. He could be sweet at other times, but at times like this the jerkiness just oozed out of him with every word, obscuring whatever good in him she had once seen. Jennifer was starting to wonder if that was why she kissed him the first time at the party where they had met. She was probably just trying to shut him up.
“So are you ready to go babe?”
Jennifer groaned inwardly again.
“Just let me change real quickly and throw some makeup on.”
Steve sighed audibly and Jennifer was finding herself wishing for the third time in ten minutes that she had just had the courage to come home and face the situation by herself. At this point though she was committed. She couldn’t very well send Steve back to campus. Dinner would be ok. She knew that it was going to be long, but she had to go to say thank you to Charles and Samuel for their incredible generosity, if nothing else.
Jennifer purposely took her time while she was getting ready, making Steve wait as a form punishment for all of his dramatics. She knew that was pretty passive aggressive of her, but in that moment she didn’t really care. She smiled sweetly at Steve thirty minutes later as she finally came downstairs. He couldn’t be too mad at her, looking as good as she did. The dress she wore was red, short, and tight. Her heels made her legs seem a mile long and with her hair flowing down her shoulders she was an absolute bombshell. It was clear from his expression that his desire to get some had reached a crescendo and suddenly he wasn’t too keen on leaving the house at all.
He walked over to his girlfriend and pulled her into his embrace, his lips crashing down on hers. His lips slid over hers, but she was reluctant to open her mouth. Jennifer was actually thinking about Charles as Steve touched her. It was the other man that she wished was kissing her, and pressing her against his hard body like he had in the coatroom. Given, it wasn’t the most romantic spot, but it would have to do. She pulled away from Steve as his hand crept closer to her hot center. Jennifer didn’t want him to feel how wet she was. She was not wet so much for him as she was for her own stepbrother.
“Stop, we are already late and we need to get going.”
The man growled and grabbed her firm ass cheek as she started to walk towards the front door. She could feel his eyes on her flesh as she walked away and she found she liked it. Maybe she would slack her thirst with her boyfriend after all. What a novel concept, she thought. He may be a dick, but he had waited quite a while after all. This was her thought as they got into her car. Her body wanted satisfaction and it did not seem that it was all that worried about who it actually came from. When she thought about hot steamy dirty sex, however, it was Charles who came to mind.
6
“I am so happy you finally made it. I called and you didn’t answer.”
“Sorry mom. I had to go by the house to drop my things and get ready.”
“The house? I thought you were staying here and we could have Christmas morning together.”
“I went by our old house.”
“What do you mean?”
“Didn’t Ryan tell you?”
“Tell her what?”
Jennifer looked over at the aging man walking up to the stair. He was dressed formally, as he always was. She was a little caught off guard by his appearance but proceeded with the story undeterred.
“That your sons kindly bought her house and gave it to me. Charles sent me a card and the deed to the house. Don’t tell me you didn’t know of their generosity.” She was laying on the sweetness to be sure and frame the whole thing as a grand noble gesture, lest Ryan get in the way of it going through.
By the look on the man’s face, it was quite obvious that he didn’t know anything about it. Although he didn’t say anything, by the newly arrived twitch in his brow, the news seemed to upset him. He turned and left, presumably to go look for his impulsive, and recently very gallant sons. Jennifer introduced her mother to Steve and was in turn introduced to several of Ryan’s family members. Her sister was not there and when she asked Darla where she was, she was given a puckered look that was akin to her husband’s. Sadly, it looked like she was becoming just like him.
After some chit chat and introductions Steve was pulled into a conversation with some other guests.
“Well he is a nice looking boy. He dresses well,” said Darla approvingly.
Jennifer sighed as they watched Steve talking to Ryan’s brother. She was sure it was about something boring. She knew that by “dresses well,” her mother was speaking of the man’s means. Jennifer couldn’t have cared less about that and she couldn’t believe that the same woman who had told her to follow her heart when she was younger now seemed to only consider finances as the defining factor in her daughter’s love life.
It was then that Charles and his brother Samuel came into the room. Jennifer was stalled for a moment as her eyes drank in the sight of her new brothers. They were similar in looks, yet each distinct and unique in his own way. Her heart pounded in her chest as they walked over to where she was standing. Samuel was attractive as well, but it was Charles who attracted Jennifer. Her mother had long been forgotten and she turned to Charles for the first time since that coat room.
“Thank you so much!”
There was nothing else that she could say to them but to thank them. She wasn’t sure if they knew how much it had meant to her, but she thought it was obvious that it meant
the world. It meant that she could hold on to so many cherished memories. She even had hopes of maybe starting her own family there someday. Jennifer wrapped her arms around the startled man and she immediately felt the same way she had felt in the coat room. If there had not been so many people around, namely her boyfriend as well as her own new extended family, she would have liked nothing better than to finish what they had started that day so many months before. It was readily apparent that Charles was receptive to her gratitude.
She reluctantly pulled away, though she was happy to see he was just as affected as she was. His brown eyes bore into her hers and she looked away to save herself embarrassment. Jennifer turned towards Samuel and gave him the same hug, though she did not feel the fire she did with Charles. Steve seemed to be a bit bothered by all the hugging and was quickly at her side introducing himself. Despite the knowledge that these were her new stepbrothers, some primal defense was triggered and Steve made it clear that they were a couple. She, on the other hand, had never wanted him to be gone as much as she did at that moment. Charles had a semi-deflated look on his face. Jennifer wished that she could take that look away. She actually had a pretty good idea of how she could do it, too.
Dinner was beautiful and the food was almost so pretty to look at that she didn’t want to spoil it by eating anything. The conversation revolved around business and while Steve had plenty to say, Jennifer could not think of anything to add. She couldn’t have cared less about mergers and profit margins. All she could think about was the dark-haired man that kept looking at her from across the table. Their eyes met once and she wanted to melt into her seat.
“So are you staying here for the night? It would be nice if we could all wake up to Christmas morning together as a family for the first time.”
What the Outlaw Keeps Page 41